Though David Ogden Stiers was adored as Major Charles Winchester III on M*A*S*H, many forget that Stiers was a Juilliard-educated actor with a flair for the dramatic.

During an interview, Stiers explained that he frequently sought other work while on hiatus from the hit television series in order to stretch his acting muscles.

“It’s not important - it’s imperative,” said Stiers to The Pittsburgh Press. “I feel the need to expose myself to other experiences, writers, actors, and audiences to bring new energy, attitudes, and a heightened awareness of my value to an ongoing project. It’s a matter of need for me.”

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When turning to training, Stiers often preferred working in the classics.

“Shakespeare, of course, is what I enjoy doing most,” said the actor. “Playing his roles fills up in me what TV erodes. It allows me to use my mind, my feelings, and the sum of my experiences. The wonderful part is that you can appear in Shakespeare again and again and never hit it, all the while learning more and more about yourself. Shakespeare is a test like none other for the actor.”

In fact, though the television feels as far from Shakespeare as one could get, Stiers argued that his time acting with The Bard helped improve his work on television.

“Working in those classic plays touches me most deeply, uses me most deeply,” said the actor. “How can there be anything more useful than dealing with the basic themes of life, which were Shakespeare’s concerns? Working in his plays gives me more artillery to bear on episodic television, which is hard work in itself, more toil but less spiritually rewarding.”